The present invention relates to wheeled excavators and more particularly relates to a skid-steer excavator having a dozer blade coupled to the undercarriage thereof.
A skid-steer excavator having a dozer blade attachment is the subject of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 511,601 filed on July 7, 1983 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,464,852. This excavator is provided with three pairs of ground wheels, with the ground wheels at one side of the excavator being driven separately from the ground wheels at the opposite side of the excavator. The skid-steer function is enhanced by the fact that the middle wheel on the opposite sides of the excavator is disposed at a slightly lower level than the other two wheels. However, this wheel arrangement makes the undercarriage somewhat unstable since it tends to rock to-and-fro about the middle wheel and this rocking movement adversely affects the grading operation of the blade.